Statement_of_work__2019_v2.docx

STATEMENT OF WORK –

CONGRESSIONAL REPORTING SERVICES

C.1 Subscription for an online news and congressional monitoring service - from September 30, 2019 through September 29, 2024. The subscription should include access to the sources, tools and features outlined below for up to 14 authorized and licensed users.

C.2 SCOPE. The Contractor delivers or provides access to commercial off-the-shelf electronic information resources for the FEDLINK program. Information products and services shall be available for ordering agencies with multiple organizational levels and geographic locations nationwide and/or worldwide.

Requirements are divided into four lots as follows:

C.3 REQUIREMENTS.

C.3.l LOT I -ELECTRONIC OATABASES/PUBLICATIONS.

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES. Lot I is the core of this contract. It covers publishers and Contractors who provide access to commercial off-the-shelf electronic materials in many publication formats as described below. All Contractors must provide products and services under either Lot I or Lot 2.

(a) Information Retrieval Databases. Electronic information retrieval database Contractors provide access, search and retrieval of information from databases and other electronic publications installed on a server managed by the Contractor and made available through the Contractor's search interface. The system may be accessed and search results delivered primarily via the Web, and to a lesser extent dedicated lines/ports or newsfeeds. Access is typically controlled through Internet protocol (IP) ad dresses, proxy services, or passwords for individual users. Authorized users can search and retrieve text and data on-demand, view records on their desktop and download or print items in a variety of record formats. Information retrieval services may be priced by transaction, subscription, or in blocks.

(b) Current Awareness Service. Current awareness service allows for the dissemination of information that will keep users well informed and up-to-date in their field of interest in a timely manner. Current awareness service reviews/scans publications immediately selects information matching the needs of the organization and/or user, and sends the information electronically. Also known as personalized alerts, trackers, SD\s (selective dissemination of information), or table of contents (TOC) services, current awareness services may be directed not only to individuals or a group, but to all users in the organization. Current awareness services may be priced by transaction, by subscription or in blocks.

Profiles may be specific to individual s, groups of associated users, or may be predefined by the Con tractor. Examples would be: a scientist might establish an alert for research on environmental toxins; an agency may set up a regular search for citations to articles published by its grantees; a librarian might subscribe to table of contents service for journal s used by library customers; a Contractor might establish a standard profile for updates on legislative or regulatory action on telecommunications re form.

(c) Federated and Content Integration Services. Federated services are an information retrieval technology to meet the need of searching multiple disparate content sources with a single query. The search is distributed through various search engines and database and provides a centralized access of Web sites or products and/or other electronic information retrieval systems. Federated services usually provide a common interface or command language for integrated searching, and may offer centralized administration and billing for use of remote fee-for-service or proprietary systems. Systems accessed via federated searching and charges billed through the federated services must fall within the scope of this solicitation. Federated services may be priced by transaction, by subscription or in blocks.

Content integration services involve combining content from disparate sources and providing users with a unified view of and access to that content. Content integration can consolidate content sources under a single interface enabling users to discover, search, navigate, and manipulate consistent con tent. Integration services may apply taxonomies, uniform tagging, metadata, indexing, ontology and vocabularies to content. The content can be normalized, optimized and migrated to a wide array of end-user applications, platforms, enterprise portals, or content management systems. Content integration services facilitate sharing, discovery, delivery, and usability of content. Content integration services may be priced by quantity (e.g. transaction, blocks, content) or by subscription.

(d) Electronic Serials. Electronic serials (e-journals) are scholarly publications that typically include articles, illustrations, and other materials that appear in an issue of a journal, magazine or other periodical publication. While E-journals may be published solely in electronic format, most electronic serials are electronic versions of traditional print periodicals. E-journals frequently incorporate hyperlinks or multi-media elements. They are usually provided on a subscription basis to a defined group of users within an organization or to a consortium of institutions. The Contractor shall provide access to an archive or back file issues of thee-journals, by maintaining the files centrally or allowing the sub scriber to retain an archival copy.

Note that book jobbers and serials agents are covered by separate LC/FEDLINK solicitations and con tracts and are not the subject of this procurement.

(e) Electronic Books. Electronic books (e-books) are book publications available in digital form which consist of text and/or images. Electronic books allow patrons to search, borrow, read, and return via the Web or other Internet channels. E-books may be published as full text collections or individual titles. E-books may be electronic versions of print titles, or may be works published solely in electronic format. E-books frequently incorporate interactive leading tools, such as hyperlinks or multi media elements. They are usually provided for the institutional library or information center market on a subscription basis. The Contractor typically provides access toe-books while maintaining the files centrally. Library subscribers may incorporate e-books bibliographic records into their existing information retrieval catalogs for users' desktop access. E-Book collections, packages and individual titles shall be identified and listed in the Contractor's contract.

Note that book jobbers and serials agents are covered by separate LC/FEDLINK solicitations and con tracts and are not the subject of this procurement.

C.3.I.2 SUPPORT REQUIREMENTS.

(a) IP Addresses. The Contractor shall be responsible for receiving and maintaining IP addresses and shall promptly respond to any changes in IPs which includes new IPs as well as cancellation of IPs. The Contractor shall maintain IP addresses for the Contractor's databases and other electronic publications until Customer's funding is exhausted or the Customer cancels subscription. The Contractor shall provide access to content purchased by the Customer.

(b) User IDs, Passwords. If the Contractor does not accept IP addresses, the Contractor shall be responsible for issuing and maintaining user IDs that are necessary to access the Contractor's databases or other electronic publication s. The Contractor shall issue IDs for new Customers or additional users promptly and will keep records of all IDs issued. The Contractor may issue passwords at the time user IDs are issued, or the user will create the password. The Contractor shall establish procedures for Customers to request IDs and will identify any restrictions on use of IDs.

(c) Canceling IDs. Upon Customer request, the Contractor shall promptly cancel individual IDs and terminate charges associated with continued service for those IDs. Except when the Customer's funding is exhausted, the Contractor shall not terminate IDs without advance notification. The Contractor shall establish procedure s for Customers to cancel IDs.

(d) Undelivered or Unacceptable Materials. The Contractor shall provide a way for Customers to “claim” electronic files that are undelivered or unacceptable, such as: undelivered current awareness reports or electronic journal issues normally distributed via e-mail; files corrupted in transmission; or alert or tracker reports that do not match personalized profiles or are outdated.

(e) Subscriptions. Subscriptions may be offered for information retrieval services, electronic books, and electronic serials as well as for other electronic media. Contractors will describe subscriptions in terms of four elements: what, for whom (i.e. agency, individuals), how much and for how long. Examples might be:

(I) Subscription Invoicing. The Contractor shall invoice for the entire subscription price when the order is placed or may invoice on a regular periodic basis. When subscriptions are pre paid, they should earn significant discounts for the government. Because a customer may have a subscription that covers some usage (for certain users, certain files, etc.) but may pay transactional prices for other usage, it is very important that all usage associated with the Subscription be charged to the subscription and reported against it. Subscription invoices will reflect the delivery order number and date. Double charging for usage by deducting from a subscription amount and charging transactional fees is prohibited. For subscriptions to electronic publications, the Contractor shall provide Customers with a way to determine how much usage there has been under the subscription. This will allow the Customer to determine if the cost per use of the subscription is financially acceptable to continue the subscription, or if the cost per use is financially unacceptable resulting in the cancellation of the subscription.

(2) Subscription cancellation and refunds. When, in the interest of the Government, a Customer finds it necessary to cancel a subscription, a refund is due. The Contractor shall refund the entire subscription price to a Customer who cancels a subscription before the print issues and/or electronic documents are received or access to the information retrieval subscription is provided. For a Customer who cancels an annual information retrieval subscription after usage has begun, the Contractor shall pro-rate the annual subscription price so that the customer only pays for the period through the date of termination, effective 60 days following the Government's notice of termination.

(3) Volume discounts for subscription holders. Consistent with Section G.3.3. Contractors will indicate on invoices when Customers with prepaid subscriptions will receive the volume dis counts established under Section 8.2. Contractors must remit the entire discount in U.S. dollars at the end of each monthly reporting period to customers with prepaid subscriptions.

(f) E-Metrics Usage Data. The Contractor shall provide Customer usage statistics on a monthly basis for the purpose of product usage analysis.

(I) Format. E-metric usage data must be provided via electronic application-ready format. To facilitate management analysis, data manipulation, and reporting, the data format should allow for easy editing, viewing or importing into a standard database management or spreadsheet program. Report formats should include the user group (or FEDLINK lD if available), IP address or range, access profile within the user community and time period.

(2) Required Fields. E-metrics usage data will include cost-per-use data, full text retrieval, and session-specific data by database and/or publisher with the following minimum elements: number of searches, number of materials accessed and/or supplied (displayed, downloaded, saved/archived) to the user; material type (e.g., citation, abstract, full-text, Web pages, image, audio, video, etc.) and materials source (e.g., locally owned accessible materials, accessible links, etc.).

For initiatives and standards relevant to usage statistics, Contractors should refer to the following publications for current information on the measurement of web-based resources:

• International Coalition of Library Consortia (ICOLC) Guidelines for Statistical Measures of usage of Web-Based Information Resources (October 4, 2006), Additional information may be found at http:1/icolc.net/statement/ guidelines-statistical-measures-usage- web-based-in for mation-resources-1998-revised-2001-0.

• National Information Standards Organization (NISO) Z39. 7-20JX Information Services and Use: Metrics & statistics for libraries and information providers - Data Dictionary. For further information, see http://www.niso.org/publications.

(g) Bundled Packages. Contractors that offer bundled packages shall provide the Customer with an itemized list of each component (title by title, database by database, etc.) and itemized pricing in the pack age. This information provides transparency and assists Customers with price management, analysis and comparison of products, and identifies future purchases.

C.3.2 LOT 2 - DOCUMENT DELIVERY SERVICES.

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES. Lot 2 covers Contractors who provide copies of published and unpublished materials in response to specific citation requests. Contractors must provide products and services under either Lot I or Lot 2. Products/services offered include:

(a) Document Delivery Service. Unless otherwise requested. The Contractor shall provide electronic copies of published and unpublished materials in response to customer specific citation requests. If the Customer requires print copies, the Contractor shall provide it. Materials typically include journal and newspaper articles. Conference papers and proceedings, annual reports, technical reports, dissertations and theses, and official legal, financial or patent documents. The Contractor may retrieve or duplicate documents from the Contractor's own internal source files, such as journal issues held in-house in paper or electronic form, or from external sources, such as the original producer of the item. The Contractor may retrieve documents from remote information retrieval files in response to specific citation requests from the customer.

(b) Public Records Searching and Delivery. The Contractor may retrieve official legal, financial, or pa tent documents as requested by the Customer. This service will include identification, acquisition, and delivery of the official document. The Contractor shall provide the Customer with a statement de scribing how current the information is, the extent, and completeness of the public record search.

(c) Order Verification. The Customer will verify citations before placing document orders. In cases where more complete verification is required, the Customer may authorize the Contractor to establish the accuracy of the bibliographic component of the citation of a requested item. The Contractor may then assess a flat per-item fee for verification.

(d) Copyright Compliance. All items will be provided in accordance with the provisions of U.S. Copy right Law. The Contractor shall clear copyright to allow for customer use contemplated under this contract and resulting order.

(I) Royalty Fees. The Contractor is required to pay all appropriate royalty or copyright royalty fees for the use of the publications provided before the documents are shipped. Such fees may be paid directly to the copyright owner or to a reproduction rights organization. The Contractor may pass-through royalty or copyright fees to the Customer. The Customer will be notified when a royalty or copyright fee is in excess of $25.00 per document and be given the opportunity to cancel the order.

(2) Copyright Compliance Notice. To enable the Customer to identify items purchased through the document service, items supplied by the Contractor shall carry the notice ''Document De livery Service Item."

C.3.2.t SUPPORT REQUIREMENTS.

(a) Order Cancellation.

(I) By the Customer. The Customer may cancel an order after placement but before shipment. In such cases the Contractor may assess a flat charge for canceling the order. When the Customer rejects an order due to late delivery of the requested item, or unsatisfactory quality of the document, the Contractor may not assess a cancellation fee.

(2) By the Contractor. The Contractor shall cancel orders which cannot be filled within specified turnaround time. The Contractor shall provide the Customer with a written notice of the cancellation. The notice will be supplied within five working days of the date the order is canceled, or within five working days of the date the Contractor determines that a timely, quality document cannot be supplied. No cancellation fee may be assessed by the Contractor for an order canceled by the Contractor or the Contractor's agent.

(b) Management Data/Reports. To help the Customer track and manage its document delivery activity. The Contractor shall provide document delivery service "usage'' data in electronic format suitable for import into spreadsheet or database management applications. The data will include:

(I) identification information: POC, ordering office, ship-to address or ID; and

(2) Order information: fiscal year and date of the order, item, quantity, list price, discount, service fee, copyright fee, special delivery fee, extended price

(c) Delivery. Documents may be delivered electronically, by e-mail, fax (if available), mail or special delivery. The Contractor shall specify regular and rush fulfillment times for processing and delivery of all orders, and will provide accurate and complete materials of satisfactory quality within those timeframes regardless of the document's point of origin.

C.3.3 LOT 3 - ASSOCIATED PUBLICATIONS. Lot 3 is only open to Contractors who qualify under Lot I. Contractors that offer electronic database/publications under Lot 1 may also provide their own commercial-of-the-shelf print, video, microform or multimedia publications. The Contractor shall provide electronic access to its catalog of available publications.

C.3.4 LOT 4- SPECIALIZED ACCESS I PRODUCT INTEGRATION. Lot 4 is only open to Con-tractors who qualify under Lot I and/or Lot 2. Under Lot 4, Contractors may tailor their electronic publication packages provided under Lot I and Lot 2 for specific individual Customers. Contractors may work with Customers to provide seamless integration of structured internal and external content into the Customers' work flow environment (e.g. Intranet, extranet, portal, etc.). The contractor shall address how their Customer-specific products will be updated and maintained. Contractors may provide database searching, translations, training, consultant services, analysis, research and other professional assistance associated with the electronic information resources they offer. Professional assistance will be priced on a per-item basis, not an hourly basis (e.g., per search, per summary report, per translation, etc.) Contractors must define costs of products/services offered under Lot 4 with as much specificity as possible including the basis of any custom quotes.

All materials will be provided in accordance with the provisions of U .S. Copyright Law. The Contractor is required to pay all appropriate royalty or copyright royalty fees for the use of or link to full text publications. The Contractor shall provide Customers with a statement that their products and services comply with the copyright provisions.

The Contractor may offer specialized groupings of its existing electronic information retrieval databases/publications, may have a predefined access and pricing formula for picking and choosing among files, and/or may set up a specific grouping as requested by particular Customer. The Contractor may provide access and searching to electronic databases/publications that are created and maintained by the Customer and made available through the Contractor's system. The Contractor may prepare a special interface to its electronic database/publication for a Customer, such as provide an access and search link between a Customer's portal and the Contractor's web-based system; develop ways to reformat database search results so that they are accessible in the Customer's internal system; or prepare a special menu on the Contractor's system for the Customer's end-users to see when accessing the special grouping of files. This does not include custom database creation, nor editing or other maintenance of the Customer's data or files by the Contractor's personnel. Customer-specific grouping of files, custom interfaces, and access and searching of Customer-specific material may require a separate statement of work and will be negotiated at the task order level on an individual basis.

The Contractor may provide subject and technical expertise to Customers in searching the Contractor's electronic resources. Collating search results, and translating material s. Research assistance might include. for ex ample: helping an end-user formulate an efficient search in the Contractor's database; or searching for current research on a topic requested by the Customer, collating search results, and preparing a synthesis of findings. These services will be described on a fixed-price deliverables basis (e.g., per search, per number of resources accesses, per research report) not on an open-ended time and materials basis. These services may be offered to all Customers at standard prices established in the contract. For selected Customer requirements, services may be described and may require a separate statement of work and will be negotiated on an individual basis.

Note: under this contract, research assistance does not cover on-site personal services such as staffing library reference desks, or long-term consultant projects.

C.4 FEDLINK REQUIREMENTS FOR PHYSICAL ITEMS ORDERED. The following requirements apply to item orders for documents, print publications or other physical items covered by this contract.

(a) FULFILLMENT TIME. The Contractor shall specify a standard fulfillment time for processing and delivery of all orders, including those shipped directly from the publication/document source to the Customer. The Contractor shall provide both regular and rush order service including pricing for the service. So that Customer funds are not committed indefinitely, all orders will either be filled or canceled within 120 days.

(b) BACKORDERS. When specifically authorized by the Customer, the Contractor may treat difficult-to-acquire items as backorders. (See fulfillment time above)

(c) CANCELLATION. The Contractor shall cancel orders that cannot be filled within the specified time frames, unless upon mutual prior agreement between the Customer and the Contractor the fulfillment period is extended.

(d) SHIPPING. Physical items will be shipped FOB destination by best method as determined by the Contractor to insure a timely delivery date. The Government will not be charged for shipping, except when the Customer has authorized a special delivery method. When the Customer has authorized delivery via over night mail, messenger service, registered mail, priority mail for overseas shipments, or other such special de livery methods, the Contractor may pass the shipping charge through to the Customer. The Contractor shall supply the Customer with proof of actual shipping costs upon request.

(e) REPLACING PHYSICALLY UNSATISFACTORY ITEMS. The Contractor shall replace, at no additional cost to the Customer, any document or publication the Customer determines is physically unsatisfactory, except when the material is flawed as a direct result of the Customer's error. Physically unsatisfactory material would include, for example: an electronic file that cannot be read or printed; a photocopy that is illegible, over-reduced, improperly collated, or incomplete; a print publication that is not new, is in poor condition, etc.

(f) UNDELIVERED ITEMS. The Contractor is entirely responsible for materials in transit, including de livery from a remote source. The Contractor shall immediately reissue undelivered items less than $10 in value at no additional cost to the Customer, and will assist Customers in tracing undelivered items of greater value, and if the trace fails to locate the material s, will replace them at no additional cost to the Government.

2019 SOW Requirements

1. Federal Legislative Tracking with Alerts:

A. Bill Tracking, with online historical archive access - Ability to follow bills online in real-time as action is taken on the Hill, including hearings, markups, new amendments, cosponsors, and other major actions. Ability to create bill alerts by keyword, bill number, committee or subcommittee, sponsor or co-sponsor, chamber, legislative stage, section of US Code, etc. Bill alerts should include option for notes/tags. There should also be the ability to create custom bill reports summarizing activity on user-selected legislation.

B. Committee Markup Coverage, Hearings and Rosters, with online historical archive - Access to coverage for every open committee and subcommittee markup. Reports should be delivered within 24-48 hours of the markup's conclusion and include a detailed summary, links to amendments and vote breakdowns. Access should also include listings of past committee hearings, including agendas, witness lists submitted testimony, and detailed committee rosters complete with jurisdiction overviews, subcommittee breakdowns and staff contact information. All content should be searchable and alerts.

C. Member Profiles and Staff Listings - Searchable database of every member of Congress. Each profile should include detailed information about staff (including email and phone numbers), state and districts, member biographies, voting and electoral histories, committee assignments, caucus affiliations, legislative priorities, speeches, interest group ratings, positions on key issues, social media handles and more.

D. Government Documents - Access to an online repository of government documents, with a historical archive. Content should be full-text searchable and alertable. Access should, at minimum include: Bill Text, Committee Reports, Congressional Records, CRS, GAO, and CBO Reports, and OMB documents.

E. Budget Tracker with online historical archive access - Access of all year-round budget and appropriations related activities through daily updates, detailed reports, and other searchable online features. Analysis should include activity from Congress, the CBO, GAO, the White House, and others, including schedules, news and background, charts and bill texts, line items, floor speeches, etc. Coverage should include the appropriations process from the drafting stage through final conference reports of all regular spending bills, CRs, supplemental, etc.

2. News & Analysis (with online archive access to past news/analysis) A. Daily Legislative News and Insights - including articles on important (social welfare related) congressional action including floor activity, markups, hearings conference committee negotiations and a wrap-up of the previous day's Hill activity.

B. Online transcripts - Coverage of important (social welfare related) committee and subcommittee hearings, including access to transcripts of hearings (testimony and Q&A) and mark-ups. Included access to past transcripts. For events not automatically transcribed, the ability to request a transcript with 3-5 day turnaround.

C. Online publications/analysis - Publications on policymaking process, providing perspective on how particular legislation is shaped, who is shaping it and how the process could affect varying interests. Publications should include a comprehensive wrap-up of Hill activity from the previous week, vote breakdowns and a look at the week ahead. Additional publication on legislative and policy news in an objective and non-partisan manner.

D. Bill Analysis - Access to expert summaries and analysis of major bills before Congress, including background information and prospects for passage, synopsis of major amendments, and links to related bills in the current Congress. Reports should be updated after major action occurs in committee or on the floor. Analysis should also include comparisons of related bills on the same issue area, if there is a prospect for movement/consolidation.

3. Schedules, Alerts, and other Tools and Support:

A. Schedules - calendar of current and future events for Capitol Hill, the White House, Federal Departments & Agencies, Federal Courts, leading policy groups/think tanks, and other newsworthy events available online and via daily/regular emails. Listings should be downloadable to Outlook, with automatic email updates for any changes that may occur. Event listings should include dates, times, locations, agendas, contact information and witnesses as available. All content should be full-text searchable and alertable allowing users to received customized email alerts and updates on events of interest to them. Should include access to historical archive of the Congressional calendar.

B. Custom Search Lists - Ability for each user to easily save commonly used search criteria to run future searches, setup custom email alerts and run reports. Lists should be created based on keywords, phrases, bills, laws, members, votes and committees, with Boolean and/or functionality.

C. Custom Email Alerts -Ability for users to receive new information pertinent to their interest areas as it posts to the site, or on a scheduled basis as desired by the user. Alerts should be customizable at the user-level so each person can receive unique content based on their delivery preferences, and built using Boolean features (and/or/near/not) on user selected keywords, phrases, bills, committees, subcommittees and members. Emails should provide an excerpt showing where the keywords are in the legislative language within the body of the email alert itself, links should also direct the user to the pertinent sections of texts based on their customized keywords.

D. Training and Support - Ability for users to access telephone and online support for assistance in developing alerts, searching for specific documents, training for new employees, etc.

ACF Legislative Focus Areas: In the requirements above, "important", "major", "pertinent", "newsworthy", etc. relate to social welfare issue areas within the ACF purview. These include, but are not limited to, the following issue areas: family assistance, poverty, healthy marriage, TANF, community services, LIHEAP, community and economic development, child support enforcement, child welfare, adoption, child abuse, foster care, runaway and homeless youth, domestic violence, human trafficking, child care, head start, early childhood development, refugee resettlement, unaccompanied minors, and tribal social welfare/human service issues.